Mooring structure and method

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to a mooring structure and method, comprising a triangular template or diaphragm having vertical sleeves at the corners through which tubular legs or piles are driven in telescoping arrangement. The vertical sleeves have diametrical offsets to enable their easy connection to the diaphragm. The sleeves are welded to angularly cut bottom ends of the legs. A prefabricated triangular casting is welded to the interior surfaces of the tops of the legs. Concrete is then poured through a funnel simultaneously into all the legs. One or more diaphragms may be used with each structure at a selected height above or below the water level.

United States Patent 1 Crain MOORING STRUCTURE AND METHOD [76] Inventor: Graydon H. Crain, Freedom Rd.,

RD. 3, Mars, Pa. 16046 [22] Filed: Mar. 2, 1973 [2]] Appl. No.1 337,595

Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation-impart of Ser. No. 151,641, June 10,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 4/1961 Crake 2,927,435 3/1960 Upson 3,665,670 5/1972 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 671,866 5/1952 Great Britain 61/46 Rummler 52/655 [451 Feb.12, 1974 Primary Examiner-Jacob Shapiro [5 7] ABSTRACT This invention relates to a mooring structure and method, comprising a triangular template or diaphragm having vertical sleeves at the corners through which tubular legs or piles are driven in telescoping arrangement. The vertical sleeves have diametrical offsets to enable their easy connection to the diaphragm. The sleeves are welded to angularly cut bottom ends of the legs. A prefabricated triangular casting is welded to the interior surfaces of the tops of the legs. Concrete is then poured through a funnel simultaneously into all the legs. One or more 'diaphragms may be used with each structure at a selected height above or below the water level.

3 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures 1 MOORING STRUCTURE AND METHOD This invention relates to a mooring structure and to the method of erecting such structure. This application is a continuation-impart of Ser. No. 151,641, filed June 10, 1971, entitled MOORING STRUCTURE AND METHOD. f

In the past, mooring structures have been generally erected by driving wooden poles into the river bottom and tieing or bunching them together. These have not provde satisfactory since they require considerable time for erection at the river site and great difficulty is encountered in properly arranging or bunching the poles into the desired final shape for the assembly.

An object of the present invention is to provide a novel mooring structure and method of assembly which are devoid of the above named disadvantages of prior structures and methods of assembly and which enable prefabrication of main parts of the assembly before transporting the assembly to the site, thereby saving considerable labor time and expense for erection and enabling construction of a more accurate and reliable assembly of reproducible design having mcuh longer life than heretofore possible.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a mooring structure and method of assembly enabling the hollow legs or piles to be driven through a triangular template or diaphragm while the template is being held, by barges or the like, a predetermined distance above the surface of the water,- and finally welding the template to the legs and welding a tripod onto the top of said legs.

Another object of the invention is to provide a mooring tripod-like structure wherein the inclined legs are devoid of any vertical portions that involve difficulty in 'welding at the site.

Other objects and advantages will become more apparent from a study of the following description, taken with the accompanying drawing wherein:

FIG. I is an elevational view, with portions broken away, of a mooring structure embodying the present invention; j

FIG. 2 is an enlarged, top view thereof;

FIG. 3 is a top view ofa casting 8 welded to the inside of the top ends of the pipes of the tripod structure;

FIG. 4 is a side view of the casting of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged, fragmentary, view of one of the corners of the diaphragm of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line Vl-VI of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a top view of a connector for connecting two pipes at right angles;

FIG. 8 is a top view of a connector for four pipes at right angles in the same plane;

FIG. 9 is a top view of a connector for three pipes at right angles; and,

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX of FIG; 9.

Referring more particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawing, numeral 1 generally denotes a mooring structure, generally of tripod outline, and comprising three vertically extending pipes 2 disposed at the corners of a triangle, such as a equilateral triangle, whose corners are formed by sleeve connectors 3 which may be in the form of steel castings. As shown in FIG. 1, pipes 2 form the supports for the mooring structure and are driven into the ground at the bottom of the river, lake or other body of water.

Supported directly on top of the connectors or castings 3 of the template or diaphragm are pipes 4, 4, in a vertical plane and pipe 5 which is downwardly inclined from such vertical plane, as shown more clearly in FIG. 2.

By virtue of an extension 6 of the otherwise circular top of casting 3, the bottoms of pipes 4 and 5 are cut at an angle to the axes of the pipes, thus forming an oval outline which is directly supported on the extended oval shaped base provided by extension 6.

Interconnecting the sleeves or castings 3 are pipes 7 which form a triangular template or diaphragm which is attached to the top portion of pipes 2 by slip fitting the vertical sleeves thereof with the top ends of pipes 2.

As shown more clearly in FIG. 5, pipe 7 may be slipfitted into the two angular extending sleeves in the horizontal plane of the diaphragm. While FIG. 6 shows such sleeves to be continuous, a modification would be to omit the top semi-circular portion in a portion of the extremities of such sleeves to facilitate insertion of pipe 7 therein.

FIGS. 3 and 4 show a connector, preferably, a steel casting 8 which fits inside the top end portions of pipes 4 and 5 and are welded thereto along their outer contacting edges. The casting comprises arcuate cut-out portions 4' fitting into the interior surface of pipes 4,4, and an arcuate portion 5' fitting into the interior of the top end of pipeS. The casting is hollowed out by openings 9 extending therethrough to make it lighter and less expensive and to permit a weld at the arcuate cutouts of the connector to obatin additional structural strength. Casting 8 very effectively bonds and ties together the top ends of pipes 4 and 5 after being welded onto the interior surfaces of such top ends.

After the supporting pipes 2 have been driven by a pile driver or the like into the bottom of the reiver and the diaphragm is mounted thereon, the tripod, constituting pipes 4 and 5, may be laid directly on the elongated top surfacesof the sleeves 3 including extension 6' while casting 8 is fitted or nested inside the top ends of pipes 4 and 5 to which they are then welded.

Finally, a funnel 10 having three spouts 11 which are adapted to become slip-fitted into the top ends of pipes 4 andS are used for pouring concrete 12 into pipes 4 and 5 simultaneously, thereby filling such pipes, as well as pipes 2, thus forming a very strongly reinforced mooring structure.

FIG. 7 shows a modification of the connector or casting 13 having a vertical sleeve 15 and two horizontal connecting sleeves into which are slip-fitted two pipes 14 disposed at right angles.

FIG. 8 shows a modified connector 16 having four sleeves or connectors for tieing together four pipes 14 at right angles and in the same plane.

FIGS. 9 and 10 show a further modified connector 17 for connecting three pipes 14 disposed at right angles in the same plane. It will be noted from FIG. 10 that the ends of pipes 14 may be projected all the way into pipe 15 during the connecting operation and thereafter retracted to the position shown before welding.

Thus it will be seen that l have provided an improved mooring structure and method of assembly wherein the tripod is devoid of vertical portions that are difficult to weld at the site and, instead, is provided with bottoms in an angular plane relative to the cross-section of the pipe so that the bottom ends may rest directly on the top surfaces of the connecting sleeves or castins forming the corners of the triangular diaphragm or template; furthermore, l have provided a highly effective casting for tieing together by welding the interior surfaces of the top ends of the tripod; furthermore, l have provided connectors capable of interconnecting, in the same horizontal plane of the diaphragm, either two, three, or four pipes in right angular relationship.

In areas where normal pools and/or water levels exist or are maintained, the triangular base structure alone will provide an adequate mooring structure without the addition of the top tripod.

If the tripod is omitted, pipes 2 of FIG. 1 (3 support piles) may be extended through the diaphragm connectors to provide mooring posts for vessel tie lines.

While I have illustrated and described several embodiments of my invention, it will be understood that these are by way of illustration only and that various changes and modifications may be contemplated in my invention and within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. A mooring structure comprising a horizontal, triangular base structure formed of pipes projecting into connectors disposed at the corners of the triangle said connectors having horizontal top surfaces, vertical supporting pipes extending into said connectors, a tripod formed of two pipes in the same vertical plane but angularly disposed and meeting at their top ends with a third pipe angularly disposed from the top ends of said pipes and terminating at the third comer of said triangle, the bottoms of said three pipes of said tripod being cut at an angle such as to rest directly on the horizontal top surfaces of said connectors so as to simplify welding thereof to said connectors.

2. A mooring structure as recited in claim 1 together with a connecting element for interconnecting the confronting interior surfaces of the top ends of said pipes forming said tripod, said connecting element having three arcuate cut-out portions snugly fitting the arcuate inner surfaces of said pipes at the top ends thereof and being welded thereto for effectively tieing said pipes together.

3. A mooring structure as recited in claim 2 wherein said connecting element is in the form of a hollow casting or iron. 

1. A mooring structure comprising a horizontal, triangular base structure formed of pipes projecting into connectors disposed at the corners of the triangle said connectors having horizontal top surfaces, vertical supporting pipes extending into said connectors, a tripod formed of two pipes in the same vertical plane but angularly disposed and meeting at their top ends with a third pipe angularly disposed from the top ends of said pipes and terminating at the third corner of said triangle, the bottoms of said three pipes of said tripod being cut at an angle such as to rest directly on the horizontal top surfaces of said connectors so as to simplify welding thereof to said connectors.
 2. A mooring structure as recited in claim 1 together with a connecting element for interconnecting the confronting interior surfaces of the top ends of said pipes forming said tripod, said connecting element having three arcuate cut-out portions snugly fitting the arcuate inner surfaces of said pipes at the top ends thereof and being welded thereto for effectively tieing said pipes together.
 3. A mooring structure as recited in claim 2 wherein said connecting element is in the form of a hollow casting or iron. 